Floor-dressing machine



G- C. WALTER Dec.

FLOOR DRESSING- MACHINE Filed June 24. 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENZ'OR. C". flv/rer 3 2 2 Q g ATTORNEY.

Dec. 15, 1925 G. C. WALTER FLOOR DRESS ING MACHINE Filed June 24. 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I N V EN TOR. 6. C Hr/fer fla " ATTORNEY.

Patented Dec. 15, 1925.

UNITED STATES GUY C. WALTER, 0F DENVER, COLORADO.

FLOOR-DRESSING MACHINE.

Application filed June 24, 1924. Serial No. 722,099.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GUY C. WALTER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Denver, in the county of Denver and State of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Floor-Dressing Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to floor dressing machines and an object of the invention is to provide a mechanism of simple construction mounted on a carriage and including a rotary abrading tool, a motor for the operation of the carriage and the tool, and a novel means for controlling the movement of the carriage in synchronism with the operative engagement of the tool with the surface of the floor.

Another object of the invention is to provide novel mechanism for controlling the movement of the carriage and the operation of the tool by adjustment of a handle; a further object is to construct and arrange said mechanism so that the carriage is at rest and the abrading tool is separated from the floor when an upwardly movable handle is in its lowermost position; and still other objects reside in details of construction and a convenient and practical arrangement of the co-operating parts of the machine as will fully appear. in the course of the following description.

An embodimentof my invention has been illustrated in the accompanying drawings in 22 the several views of which like parts are similarly designated and in which- Figure 1 represents a side elevation of my improved floor dressing machine;

Figure 2, a section along the line 2 2,

Fi ure 1 drawn to an enlarged scale.

ig. 3, an enlarged section of theresilient link between the operating handle and the abradant tool of the machine, takenon the line 33, Figure 1;

Figure 4, a fragmentary and enlarged sectional side elevation of the lower and rear portion of the machine looking in the direction of the arrow A, Figure 2;

Figure 5, an enlarged section along the line 5-5, Figure 2, and

Figure 6, an enlarged perspective view of the cam movement included in the construction.

Referring to the drawings, the reference numeral 5 designates the body of the carriage which is supported upon ground-wheels 6 and 7 mounted in pairs on 9 and 10.

The body is hollow to provide a housing for the operating mechanism and it has interiorly a sub-casing 12 in which the gearelements of the mechanism are protected from the dust formed in the operation of the machine.

The abrading tool of the machine consists of a roller 13 pivotally mounted forward of the carriage by means of parallel arms 1 and having a toothed wheel 15 for its connection with the driving element of the mechanism as will hereinafter be more fully described.

A suction fan 16 supported at the front end of the carriage connects with a nozzle 17 adjacent the surface of the roller for the removal of the dust produced in the operatioirof the machine to a rearwardly located recelver 18.

The handle by means of which the movements of the machine are controlled by the operator, consists of a bifurcated lever 19 which is fulcrumed at the sides of the carriage by means of a cross shaft 20.

Links 21 shown in detail in Figure 3, provide for the conjoint movement of the ban dle and the abrading tool by connection with the arms let of the latter which are pivoted at the sides of the carriage above the extremities of the members of the bifurcated lever, through the medium of a cross shaft parallel axles The links each consists of a tubular springhousing longitudinally slotted for the bifurcation of its lower portion, which straddles the respective arm 14 of the tool. A screw plug 23 at the upper end of the tube provides an abutment for a coiled spring 24.- which engages the upper edge of the arm 1d within the housing.

At the lower extremity of the link, the respective member of the lever 19 is pivoted by means of a bolt 25.

An electric motor 26 mounted on top of the carriage, is adapted for connection in an electric lighting circuit by the usual plug, and a switch 27 in a conductor by which the plug is connected to the motor is conveniently attached to the handle withmediate shaft by means of a chain 30 engaging with the before mentioned toothed wheel 15 of the tool.

A chain 31 drives the suction fan by connection with the shaft of the motor as shown in Figure l.

Loosely mounted upon the rear axle 9 of the carriage is a worm wheel 32 meshing with a worm on a short shaft 34 which through the intermediary of beveled gear wheels 35 and 36 is driven from the jack shaft.

The worm wheel has a clutch face adapted for co-operation with the complementary face of a clutch member 37 which is slidably mounted on the axle 9 by means of feathers 38 as best shown in Figure 5.

The gearing and the clutch are enclosed in the before mentioned interior casing 12 of the carriage, and the clutch is adjusted by connection with a mechanism exteriorly 0f the casing the construction of which is as follows:

A flanged bearing 39 fastened on the outside of the casing in alinement with an opening in a side thereof, supports a sliding pin 40 which at its end within the casing is connected with the sliding clutch member by means of a forked arm 41 straddling the member in a circumferential groove thereof.

The opposite end of the shaft, outside the casing, has a head 42 provided with a cam projection 42 adapted to co-operate with a similar projection 43 on a collar 43 which is mounted for rotation upon the bearing 39.

Two coiled springs 44 fastened between laterally projecting arms 42 on the head of the sliding pin 40, and thereto opposite eyes on the flange of the bearing 39 function to yieldingly hold the cam projections on the head and the collar in co-operative engagement.

The members of the bifurcated handle 19 at opposite sides of the carriage, are connected by means of links 45 with crank arms 46 at the ends of a rocker shaft 47 mounted on the carriage in superposed re lation to the sub-casing l2 and a crank arm 48 on the rocker shaft, at an angle to the others is connected with a laterally projecting arm 49 of the rotary collar by means of a rod 50.

In the operation of my invention, the handle is normally in its lowered position as indicated in broken lines in Figure 1. The handle in this position supports the abrasion tool in spaced relation to the surface of the floor by bearing upwardly on the arms of the tool within the bifurcated links 21.

The clutch member 37 is under the same conditions separated from its correlative on the worm wheel 32 and the machine is in consequence in a condition of rest although its motor and the therewith connected jack shaft 28, suction fan 16 and roller 13 are in motion.

To operate the machine under these conditions, the workman presses upwardly on the handle 19 and thereby causes the roller 13 to engage the floor by gravity and under pressure of the springs 24 inside the links 21.

The upward motion of the handle also effects a rotarymotion of the rocker shaft through the medium of the links and the crank arms 46, and the partial rotation of the rocker shaft is by means of the connecting rod 50 transmitted to the rotary collar 43. The movement of the collar causes the pin 40 to move longitudinally inwardly by contraction of the springs 4-4 and the movement of the pin imparts. a corresponding movement to the clutch member 37 which in consequence is interlockingly engaged with the worm wheel The rotative continuity of the worm wheel with the rear axle 9 of the carriage being thus established, the machine moves forwardly by the traction of the ground wheels (3 on said axle while at the same time, the rotary abradant tool 13 engages with the floor.

The tool is composed of a. drum around which is fastened a sheet of sand paper or other abradant substance, and its rotary engagement with the floor under the influence of its weight and the pressure of the springs 24, while it is being propelled by the movement of the carriage quickly levels, smoothes and polishes the surface of the floor to the desired finish.

It will be evident that by the use of my invention furrowing or otherwise damaging the floor by contact of the abradant tool while the carriage is at rest, is successfully avoided since by the clutch adjusting mechanism and the adjustable relation of the handie with the roller, the latter can not engage the surface of the floor unless the carriage is in motion and is immediately lifted off the floor when by downward movement of the handle, the driving connection between the motor and the carriage is discontinned.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a floor dressing machine, the combination of a carriage, a jack-shaft thereon, a motor having a driving connection with the jack shaft, a worm-gear to propel the carriage by movement of the shaft, a clutch controlling the operation of the gear, mechanism for the operation of the clutch, including a sliding cam member in operative connection with the clutch, a rotary cammember in springurged engagement with the other, a lever fulcrumed on the carriage, and means for rotation of the rotary cam member by movement of the lever.

2. In a floor dressing machine, the combination of a carriage, a j ack-shaft thereon, a motor having a driving connection with the jack shaft, a worm-gear to propel the carriage by movement of the shaft, a clutch controlling the operation of the gear, mechanism for the operation of the clutch, including a sliding cam member in operative connection with the clutch, a rotary cam-memher in spring-urged engagement with the other, a lever fulcrumed on the carriage, a rocker shaft for rotation of the rotary cammember, and means for rotation of the rocker shaft by movement of the lever.

3. In a floor dressing machine, the combination of a carriage, a motor having a propellent connection therewith, an abradant tool, tool-supporting arms pivoted on the carriage, a steering lever iulcrumed on the carriage, means controlling the propulsion oi.

the carriage by movement of the lever, links on the lever engaging the arms to lift the tool from the floor in the normal position of the lever, and springs on the links engaging the arms in an adjusted position of the lever to yieldingly hold the tool in engagement with the fioor.

4:. In a floor dressing machine, the combination of a carriage, a motor having a propellent connection therewith, an abradant tool, tool-supporting arms pivoted on the carriage, a steering lever fnlcrumed on the carriage, means controlling the propulsion of the carriage by movement of the lever,

tubular links pivoted on the lever and strad-- dling the arms, and springs in the links engaging the arms in an adjusted position of the lever to yieldingly hold the tool in engagement with the floor.

In testimony whereof I have aflixed my signature.

GUY C. WALTER. 

